Gonstead Family Chiropractic- Blog

Sciatica, a condition that many people suffer from each and every year, a word that almost everyone has heard before. To know how to fix something, you must first know what it is. Sciatica by definition of the May Clinic, is a condition where pain radiates along the path of the sciatic nerve. The nerve runs from your low back down the back of your legs, with various branches along the way. It can affect both legs, but much more commonly only affects one leg. The next step is, what causes sciatica. Again via the Mayo Clinic, sciatica is most commonly caused by a herniated disc (disc bulge), degenerative changes of the spine, which ultimately compresses the nerve creating inflammation, pain, and often numbness into the legs. Now we know what sciatica is, we know what causes it, but how can it be resolved? Most cases of sciatica are resolved through non-operative techniques. Chiropractic being one of them, and in my personal and profession opinion, one of the best resolutions for such conditions. We adjust the bones to remove pressure off of the nerve. When we do this, the pain will start to diminish. We also recommend focusing your diet to anti-inflammatory foods, to help jump start removing as much inflammation around the nerve as possible to help you heal faster. Some of these include, fish oil, turmeric, ginger, broccoli, salmon, beets, among many many more. When we tie your nutrition with your chiropractic adjustment, then implement some home stretches/exercises the combination produces amazing results in our patients. If you you or a loved one are suffering from sciatic pain, give your local chiropractor a call and see how they can help you regain your life back. Please, if you have any questions, no matter where you are from, contact us we would love to get you in touch with the right people to help you.

Constipation has occurred in just about everyone's life, whether it was as a child, as an adult, or as you grew older. There are without a doubt multiple reasons that one can become constipated. Some it stems from their diet, plain and simple, if you are not eating the right foods, you cannot expect everything to be A-ok. Some others stem from stress, lifestyle, while others can actually stem from low back issues as well. So where does chiropractic come in?Well what each chiropractor does can be different, but I know what we do in our office. We look to find the true cause of your issue, we seek to find the answers that tell the story, not just put a blanket over the diagnosis of constipation and move on. I think that is the way of our new health conscious society. Who is not seeking to find ways to better their health through non-traditional medicines? I can tell you here in San Diego, it is without a doubt the majority. I have many friends from different realms of health, acupuncture, massage, medical doctors, orthopedic surgeons, trainers, dietitians, etc. But when I speak with them all, it all comes back to finding out what the cause (problem) is and how to fix it. But back to the link between constipation and chiropractic. Our entire body, every cell, tissue, gland in our entire body is controlled through our nervous system. When we take a look into the spinal column and where our nerves travel to and from, it becomes very clear that the nerves in our low back go directly into our digestive tract (bladder, small and large intestines), while some mid back areas go into our stomachs. Think of this like plugging a toaster into the outlet, putting a piece of bread in and pushing the button down, moments later nice crispy well toasted piece of bread pops up. Now imagine that the breaker on that outlet was disrupted... now what happens moments later after putting a piece of bread down? You guessed it, NOTHING. Chiropractic resets your breaker system allowing your body to function optimally, hence a nice piece of crispy toast pops up, and your concerning and sometimes embarrassing constipation issue is resolved.

If you have been following along with the blogs, we cover a wide range of topics, but in a previous section I discussed my passion for sports and chiropractic. Well how many of us have seen the videos of athletes being adjusted on their respective fields, benches, greens, etc? Well the truth is, there is a lot more to it than just feeling better. A study was performed where they took athletes who were pain free with a control group. The goal was to adjust one group and not the other looking for changes in balance, agility, power, reaction time, and perception of touch. After 6 weeks there was a 10.57% improvement with group being adjusted compared to only 4.5% improvement by those not being adjusted. After 12 weeks that escalated to 16.7% improvement with those being adjusted. [1] So yes, does chiropractic help low back pain, neck pain, etc. Absolutely, but more importantly it allows the body to express itself at 100%, demonstrated by the study above. Now who doesn't want to have that slight edge when competing to be the best?! SIGN ME UP! Well truth be told, I signed up many years ago and let me tell you. I would not have been able to compete in four high school sports all year around or two collegiate sports at the levels I did, without chiropractic care. After an adjustment I can feel my body come to ease as an energy is spread through my body, the POWER IS BACK ON! I think it is important to to understand to not just practice what one preaches, but to educate and LIVE what one teaches. That is why the San Diego Guardians basketball team has a team doctor as a chiropractor, they want to perform at their elite level and I volunteered to get them there!Don't believe me? Go check out a chiropractor for yourself and let me know the results.

I have been in sports for as long as I can remember. Having played just about every sport I can get my feet, hands, or head into! It became a passion, you know the type where you are to the point people call it an obsession. As many athletes know, a time comes when you must hang up their desired cleats, sneakers, clubs, or whatever item was so near and dear to their soul. So what is next? Is it possible to find another passion that hits your core like none other? The answer for me is yes. I found chiropractic, well... rather chiropractic found me! No I do not have a horrific life changing example that led me here. The story is simple. Growing up in a very rural community, nobody wants to ride the bus, am I right? Well thankfully I had an older sister willing to drive me to school and arrive just in time for classes to start. She was an athlete much like myself and one day she was unable to play. She had severe pain down her leg, making it difficult to perform pretty much any athletic movements, even your daily activities were affected. Long story short is she began to see a chiropractor, much like my entire family did, however the only times she could go were before school! Waking up early for no benefit to myself, c'mon now. But I did it because I still did not want to be riding that dang yellow bus. What I began seeing before school would forever change my life unknowingly at the time. I witnessed first hand the incredible effects chiropractic had on her life. I was the best tag along you could ever imagine! Fast forward 3-4 years I made the decision that I too would become a chiropractor and help people's lives change before my eyes. Now I am sitting here some 12 years later in beautiful sunny San Diego California, writing away at this blog. I found my life long passion outside of sports, but I could not keep away from watching them, only dreaming of the days I was close enough to hear the coach talk to the players, the jokes made among teammates, the day-to-day grind of trying to be the best as a team and as an individual. I have the unique privilege of being able to tap into two of my most obsessive passions, sports and chiropractic. It is with great honor and pleasure that I have become the official team doctor for the San Diego Guardians, a semi-professional ABA league basketball team. Talk about living out your dream! I am living out my dream every single day and I am beyond fortunate for that. If there is something holding you back from living out your dream, be like chiropractic,find its cause and tackle it head on. Because anyone can run around issues, but dream makers run right through them. Find you passion, obsess over your passion, and make it your lifestyle.

How many times have you heard the term colicky baby? Well what is it, what is the cause of it, how can it be remedied. First and foremost Colic presents when a baby is constantly irritable, typically during the first few weeks following of life outside the wom. Sometimes this issue can linger all the way up past a few months or possibly longer yet. The most common sign of colic, is when a baby is crying consistently with no rhyme a reason. Babies become visibly uncomfortable, kicking, tightening of their little fists, and flailing around. It is so common that it is reported to close to one third of all babies suffer from it. What are some causes for colic at such a young age, you may ask. Some are food allergies, constipation, gas. These issues can give rise to nerve dysfunction created by a subluxated vertebra (locked joint along the spine). How did they get this?! Honestly, it is pretty simple for them to get. It occurred at birth. Imagine how stressful the birthing process is on the mother, but then imagine that same stress of pull, twisting, suctioning your baby out. That is A LOT of pressure that was just applied on their so young and fragile spines (approximately 75 psi of pressure). Now for the big question and answer. How can it be taken care. Well we obviously have our traditional ways, pharmaceuticals, whether it is applied to the skin or given orally, dietary modifications, wait it out until your baby "outgrows" it, or chiropractic adjustments. I know what you are thinking, how in the world do you expect me to allow a chiropractic to "snap" my child's back or neck like I have seen on YouTube. Well children adjust so much differently than adults. They have had their issue significantly less time, their joints are significantly more manipulative, allowing the chiropractor to use his/her pinky to adjust with no more pressure than one would apply to their eyeball. Who needs some evidence on this thought process? Yes, I see you in the back there jumping up and down with your hand raised, "me, me, me". Well perfect, there was a study in 1989 published in The Journal of Manipulative Physiological Therapeutics, where over a period of two weeks, 94% of the infants adjusted were showed positive results when compared with the other group of babies. In the end, if your child is suffering from colic, please get them to the nearest and well trusted chiropractor in your area. After all, chiropractic is one of if not the safest forms of healthcare available.